


Iris (Hold me close)

by i_dreamthedream



Series: Songs of Innocence [2]
Category: Band of Brothers
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fluff, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Kissing, M/M, Wedding Planning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-03
Updated: 2016-06-07
Packaged: 2018-07-12 01:16:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,392
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7078495
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/i_dreamthedream/pseuds/i_dreamthedream
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dick smirked against his neck and came to straddle him in one swift movement.<br/>“But I am the virtuous one,” he said smugly. “May I remind you that I’m making an honest man out of you?” He pecked his fiancé’s lips before attacking his throat with light kisses.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I thought that I was leading you (but it was you made me your man)

Lewis Nixon was distractedly watching a game on TV, late in the afternoon when Dick got home from work. He dropped his keys and coat, bended over to kiss Nix on the neck and then went to the bathroom to take a shower. When he stepped back into the living room, all clean and shaved, Nix had poured him a glass of water.

“Thanks,” he smiled, sitting next to him. Silence fell upon them, easy and comfortable.

“Liza called,” Lewis said eventually, “she’s stopping by tonight after her rehearsal.”

“Ok,” Dick answered. He took a large sip of water and put his glass on the coffee table. He put his arm around Nix’s shoulder and began to trace patterns on the other man’s skin with his cold fingers. Lewis felt a shiver of pleasure through his body that only got worse when Dick started nuzzling at his neck.

“I take it she won’t be here for another hour and a half then, yeah?” He whispered against his ear.

“Hmm,” Nixon was only able to respond. Dick bit his earlobe. “Gosh and people think you’re the virtuous one!” he panted.

Dick smirked against his neck and came to straddle him in one swift movement.

“But _I am_ the virtuous one,” he said smugly. “May I remind you that I’m making an honest man out of you?” He pecked his fiancé’s lips before attacking his throat with light kisses.

“Well, I do remember you saying yes when I was down on one knee,” Nixon chuckled. “So technically, I’m the one marrying _you._ ”

Dick dived in for another heated kiss to which Nixon responded eagerly. “Shut up Lew,” he mumbled.

“Gladly!”

 

¢

 

When Liza entered their apartment a good two hours later, she was hit by a marvelous scent. She rushed to the kitchen. “Somebody is doing the Winters special,” she smirked. Dick looked up from his stirring pan to greet her.

“Well, someone in the family needs to honor the tradition and since it’s not gonna be you…” he shrugged. The young woman made a falsely indignant sound before going to her tiptoes to kiss him on the cheek.

“And where’s my favorite future niece in law?” Nix said, coming in from the living room.

“I didn’t know you had more of one,” Liza answered, grinning. Lewis embraced her in a warm hug. “Your shirt is a mess,” she said. Nix had the decency to look guilty for a quarter of second before smiling smugly. “Don’t wanna know,” Liza shook her head. Nix laughed and the two of them disappeared in the living room, chatting animatedly. Dick felt a familiar tingle in his chest, seeing the two people he loved most together and happy and healthy. It felt like he had so much love for them that it hurt. After all these years, he still wasn’t used to the sensation. He hoped he never would.

It had been hard to have this. He and Lewis had known each other for so long that he doesn’t remember a time of his life when he didn’t know Lewis Nixon. They had kissed for the first time at sixteen, on the hood of his car with some classic rock playing in the radio. At that time, Dick had been naïve enough to believe that it would mean a happily ever after. He didn’t know those have to be earned and fought for. They made it through high school and three years of college before their life plan started to change. Dick’s older brother and his wife died in a car accident. And what was only an obituary to the local newspaper became a life-changing moment for Dick. His brother’s will was read and suddenly he was the tutor of his twelve-year-old niece. He was barely twenty-one. He didn’t know if he could do it, but he was nothing if not strong-willed. And fortunately he didn’t have to do it alone. Because despite what everyone had been expecting, Nix didn’t leave him. Instead he used the rest of his college fund to buy them a place to live, which resulted in his parents cutting him out. And yet they managed somehow to raise the scared little girl with the Winters’ red hair and his brother’s eyes and a smirk that looked incredibly like Lewis’. He thought they would be fine. With his parents’ help, he finished his studies and brought a little bookshop. But what was supposed to be the end of the trouble actually started his worst nightmare. Buying that place for them was an act of rebellion and though Nix believed he was ready to face the consequences, he wasn’t. Nix always had a weakness for good whiskey. Dick didn’t realize what was happening until it was too late. He helplessly watched the occasional drink become a daily one and then become a daily bottle. Nix was bitter, angry. He started to pick up every possible fight with Dick, accusing his boyfriend of wanting to leave with Liza. And one day, he ended up being the one leaving. They were twenty-four and for the first time of their life, they were apart. Nix went through a really difficult time. But he eventually realized that if he wanted his family back, he had only one choice to make. So one year and a half after walking away, he went into rehab to deal with his alcoholism. He rang on Dick’s doorbell six months later, clean shaved with a stable job and a sobriety chip. He never left again. That night, when the two of them were tangled together in their bed, holding on to each other with sweat cooling on their skin, Nix had murmured, “I’m going to marry you someday Richard Winters.”

Dick had raised an eyebrows, “Is that a proposal?”

“No,” he’d said. “I just wanted to warn you so you won’t be surprised when I do.”

Dick had chucked, “Well just to warn you,” he leaned in for a kiss, “when you do propose Lewis Nixon, I’m gonna say yes.” Nix had smiled and pulled him close for another round.

He did propose again, at midnight on New Year’s Eve and Dick did accept. They were now twenty-nine and had been hopelessly in love for fifteen years, had taken care of what was now a beautiful twenty-year-old young woman. This time, Dick was ready to do whatever it takes to keep his family together.

He heard his fiancé and his niece laughed from the living room.

“Are you staying for dinner Liz?” Dick called.

“You’ve cooked enough for a regiment anyway,” she smirked. Lewis just laughed.

Dick shrugged and went back to his pan.

 

¢

 

“So how are things going at the shop?” Liza asked later, when they were sitting at the table and enjoying their meal.

“Pretty good,” her uncle answered. “Web is actually coming next week for a signing session.”

“And I can’t wait to see Joe going crazy with all the fanning he’s going to get,” Nix added gleefully.

“They’ve been together for six months since Web’s got back from Mexico, you’d think Liebgott would have calm down by now,” Liza stated.

Nix raised his eyebrows at her, “We’re talking about _Joseph Liebgott!_ ”

Everybody at the table chuckled.

“Yeah fair enough,” she admitted. “And how are the wedding preparations?”

“Well,” Dick started, “we have the date…”

“Six weeks from now,” Nix chimed in.

“We have the place…”

“The Welsh’s restaurant…”

“We have the cater…”

“Harry’s cooking…”

“We have the music…”

“Since Muck and Malarkey have accepted to play DJ’s…”

“So all we have to do now is to choose those damn napkins…” Dick finished.

Liza had watched them back and forth, amused before shaking her head.

“Still not regretting to have Kitty plan it all?” she laughed.

Dick only groaned in response. Nix patted his shoulder sympathetically. It’s not that they didn’t like Kitty because she was nothing but great, they had to agree with Harry on that point. The thing is she could also be pretty intense sometimes. Deciding that going into that direction was not a good idea, Lewis said: “By the way, you haven’t R.S.V.P.ed.”

“Yeah I just forgot, I’ll do it this week,” Liza smiled.

She had said that without missing a beat, without blinking. She would have fooled anybody else but this was Lewis Nixon. The man had taught her the most important thing in life: how to master in making puppy eyes, sarcasm and most importantly how to lie to adults. _Interesting,_ Lewis thought. It wasn’t like her to lie to them or hide things from them like it seemed to be the case here. Did it mean she was bringing someone? Nix was mentally clapping at the thought. One of the many things he will never forgive alcohol was that he was absent throughout most of Liza’s high school years and more importantly that he wasn’t around for prom. She had told him that it was okay, especially considering that she went with a group of friends and that no hooking up had happened. Still, since he was back into her life, he had wanted nothing more than to terrify a boyfriend. Or a girlfriend, he wasn’t picky. Well, maybe the right time had come.


	2. Something in your eyes (took a thousand years to get here)

Harry Welsh was proud of his accomplishments. Not only was his restaurant successful, he also had amazing friends and an even more amazing wife. Kitty Grogan was a petite woman in her thirties with curly chocolate hair, warm brown eyes and a devastating smile. That smile was like a secret weapon nobody was immune to. And Lewis and Dick were no exception. Which was why Harry was watching amusingly from his restaurant’s kitchen his friends and wife talking about the upcoming wedding. As usual, Dick and Nix looked horrified to see what else aspects of their wedding ceremony they had yet to consider. They wanted to keep it simple but that still meant they had to choose a font for the place cards. Judging by his expression, Lewis was ready to write down all those names with a pen himself just to be done with it. Fortunately, Dick was much more patient than his future husband and they managed to be done with their meeting within 30 minutes.

“Gosh,” Lewis exclaimed once they were outside. “It’s a good thing we’re only doing this once because I’m not sure I could survive another two hours like that!”

“Hm…” Dick only replied. He was tempted to tease Nix by saying something about divorcing him for Matt Bomer but he decided against it. He just smiled fondly and extended his hand. “Wanna see Liza’s rehearsal?” he asked.

It was amazing he thought, how Richard Winters always managed to say what he needed to hear, how he could read his mind. Nix nodded and took his hand without hesitation. Liza was in the local college and had gotten the first role in the musical play, _Cabaret._ The theatre where the rehearsals were held wasn’t far away from the restaurant, so the two of them just walked hand in hand for a short while. They sat in the back of the room where the actors couldn’t see them. They were currently doing the opening number. The dancing was pretty impressing, Winters thought, but then again, he wasn’t really the one to know about that kind of stuff. Which didn’t stop him from going to every play and school show for the last eight years. The rehearsal wrapped itself up quickly and the people slowly scattered around. Dick was getting up when Nix got a hold on his sleeve and pulled him down on his seat.

“What?” he asked, surprised.

“Hush! Look!” Nix was pointing at the stage, eyes widened in shock. Dick looked at the direction he was indicating. At first, he didn’t see anything. But he squinted and finally saw what Nix was showing him. Liza, his sweet niece, the little girl he had cared for like she was his own was in the arms of a boy, kissing him and laughing. The guy seemed to be a few years older than her and a couple of inches taller. Now Dick had never considered himself as _that_ kind of parent. And yet right then, an irrational part of him wanted nothing other than walk over there to demand an explanation. And possibly ground her for the rest of the month and the next. Next to him, Nix had recovered from the revelation and was now marveling at the news.

 _“She has a boyfriend!”_ the grown-up man literally squealed. It was like Christmas had come early.

“Yeah,” Dick said with far much less enthusiasm. “Well let’s introduce ourselves!” He was about to get up when Nix grabbed his arm again. “What are you doing?” he asked his fiancé.

“She hasn’t RSVPed for the wedding yet,” Nixon reminded him. “She’s nervous about telling us!”

“So?”

“So you will not force her to do something she is not ready to do,” he told him firmly. “Let her come to us in her own terms. And after that, trust me I will _not_ let her breathe until I know every detail!”

Dick took another look at her. She was giggling at something the boy was whispering in her ear, her eyes were shining. He had never seen her with a smile that big. He sighed. “Let’s get out of here before she sees us,” he said before the two of them quickly made their way out unnoticed.

 

¢

 

Liza Winters had never hidden anything from her uncles before. She had never felt like it was needed. Of course it’s not like she always told them _everything_ that was happening in her life but that meant that every time something _important_ happened, she would tell them. And yet, her six months old relationship was something she just couldn’t seem to be able to bring up. It’s not like she thought that they would not like him; she was pretty sure they would get along. The thing was, she was dating a guy who was nine years older than her. She took a deep breath. She could do this, she could bring her boyfriend to the wedding and no one would make a big deal out of it. Who was she kidding, George Luz and Frank Perconte were gonna be at that wedding! She was having this inner monologue as she walked toward Dick and Lewis’ apartment.

She let herself in as usual and immediately noticed something was out of the ordinary. Her uncles were in the living room, Dick sitting at the wooden table, his head in his hands, looking tired. Lewis was furiously pacing in the room and looking like he was about to throw his fists at anything that would give him a good reason to.

“What’s going on?” Liza asked quietly. The two men jumped out of their kinda stupor to look at her. Lewis just kept pacing and glaring. Dick sighed and just pointed to the envelope on the table Liza had yet to notice. She took it wordlessly. Inside, she found the wedding announcement she had received a few weeks before. On the R.S.V.P part, the guests declined the invitation. She was about to ask why it was making them so upset when she read the name, neatly written: _Stanhope W. Nixon and Doris R. Nixon._

“Shit,” she muttered. And it said how much Dick was upset that he let the curse slide. “Nix how are you?” she asked.

“I want a drink,” he responded in honesty.

Liza saw Dick’s face flinched. She took decided steps toward him and hugged him tight. He hugged her back, just as hard. She could literally feel him hold back tears. “I’m sorry,” she mumbled in the crook of his neck. He was taller than her and had to lean down to hug her properly, which meant his back must hurt. He didn’t seem to mind at all. When he finally let go of her, she said slowly: “But you must’ve seen that coming though.”

The Nixons had never approved of their son _“lifestyle”_ as they called it, whether it was his sexuality, his struggle with alcoholism or the fact that he dropped out of college without graduating. “Yeah I did,” Lewis answered. “Still makes me feel like shit.”

He finally looked at Dick for the first time since Liza had entered the room. His fiancé extended his hand and Lewis immediately took it. Dick gently guided him toward the chair next to him and Lewis sat without protesting and without letting go of his hand.

“Lew we don’t need to do it,” Dick said quietly. “It’s a stupid tradition anyway.”

“No,” Lewis answered firmly. “I know you want to. I’m not letting my parents take that away from you!”

Liza looked back and forth between them, at lost. “What are you talking about?”

Nix sighed. “First dance,” he replied. “We’re supposed to have a first dance with our Moms.”

“Oh.”

“We don’t need to do it!” Dick insisted again.

“But you want to do it!” Nixon shot back. “And your mom wants to do it! There’s no way I’m doing that to your mother!” Dick shook his head.

Silence fell upon the apartment. Liza went to sit on the table between them, her feet balancing back and forth. Suddenly, her eyes lit up.

“I had an idea,” she told them, excitedly.

“What?” Lewis said, confused.

“Well, your first dance is at the reception, after the ceremony right?”

“Yeah,” Nix slowly agreed.

“So at that point you’ll actually be married?” she continued.

They both nodded.

“So how would you feel about having your first dance with the girl that will officially be your niece at that time?” she grinned.

Nixon’s eyes widened and his jaw dropped. “A-a-a… Are you sure?” he stammered.

“Lew,” she smiled gently. “You’ve been taking care of me since I was twelve. You’ve raised me as much as Dick has! You’re my family…” She said that like it was the most obvious thing in the world, like it was natural.

“That’s true,” Dick nodded. He looked more than ok with that idea.

Lewis took a couple of very deep breaths. He was blinking furiously. Again the two Winters saw the tears at the corner of his eyes. “That… would be an honor,” he finally managed to say. Liza jumped from where she was sitting to throw herself at his neck. Within seconds, it had become a group hug with the three of them trying to break each other’s ribs.

 

¢

 

Later they were watching _Forrest Gump_ on the couch and eating ice cream.

“Feeling better?” Liza asked Lewis with a smile.

“Hum,” Lewis nodded, his mouth full with chocolate ice cream. Both Dick and Lewis laughed at him. Liza felt safe on that couch with those two people, she was home.

“I have a boyfriend,” she blurted out as Forrest was telling JFK he had to pee. Both her uncles looked at her, curious but not shocked. She kept her eyes glued to the screen as she continued. “We’ve been dating for almost six months, he’s really great. His name is Martin and he’s twenty-nine. And I think I’m gonna ask him to be my date at the wedding.”

The two men exchanged a look but still didn’t say anything. Liza finally worked up the courage to look at them. They were smirking and looking far too pleased with themselves.

“You knew!” she said accusatorily. “How?”

“Let’s just say that your uncle almost made a scene at your rehearsal,” Lewis smirked. “And I saved you from a really embarrassing introduction!” Dick hit him.

“Ow,” Nix groaned. “Anyway, that won’t stop me from embarrassing you at the wedding!”

Liza looked at them with disbelief. “That’s all you have to say?”

They shrugged. “We haven’t met him yet,” Dick said. “But we know you and we trust your choice.” Nix snorted.

“Really?” She asked.

“Well I may have panicked a little at first,” Dick admitted. “But it’s fine now.”

Liza watched them for a long minute, searching in their faces for any signs of judgment but finding none. She broke into a grin, she kissed both of them in the cheek and went back to her bowl of ice cream, still smiling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know what you thought of it :) There should be more of this serie to come :D

**Author's Note:**

> Ok, I actually finished it! The next chapter will be post next Friday :) Tell me what you guys think and come say Hi on Tumblr (@I-dreamthedream)


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